Friday Rap-Up: The Pirate Signal, Remy Ma, Tupac, Diddy, 50 Cent

In 2006 The Pirate Signal, consisting of rapper-producer Yonnas and DJ A-What, released a self-titled EP that brought a breath of fresh air to the Colorado hip-hop scene. But because the stagnation most hip-hop artists face here in the Mile High, Yonnas moved to Brooklyn, New York, with hopes the The Pirate Signal would breakthrough and bring some attention to the local scene here.

And it’s looking like it wasn’t a fruitless journey.

“I got a bi-weekly night smack dab in the middle of the hottest neighborhood, in the hottest borough of the biggest city in the nation! That's right, Williamsburg Brooklyn, hipster capital of the universe,” Yonnas said from his BK pad. “It’s called ‘The Pirate Signal Soundsystem’ and is every other Sunday at a bar called 507 on the corner of Union and Grand.”

Unfortunately, DJ A-What didn’t make the trip to Bucktown with Yonnas, he’s staying put here in Denver. That doesn’t mean he’s idle though. He’s spinning every Friday at the Giggling Grizzly, will have a new weekly gig at the Meadowlark in May, and Twist & Shout recently hired him as their hip-hop buyer. There, he'll be responsible for keeping the shelves filled with the latest hip-hop -- local and national.

Outside of that, Yonnas and A-What are finishing up their mixtape, “The PS Pt. II: Of Gods and Gangsters Vol. 1,” which will be available next month and then possibly another album by the end of the year. Yonnas and DJ A-What will also reunite on Thursday, April 17, for a show at the Hi-Dive, just so you don’t forget about them.

“The show at the Hi-Dive is going to be our mixtape cover photo shoot,” Yonnas said. “The night is called 'The Black Party', because we want everyone to wear all black, and when the show is done, we'll all go out front and shoot some photos. So tell everyone to wear all black!”

Here’s a couple of snippets from the upcoming mixtape:

Rapper Remy Ma Found Guilty in Assault Trial

Former Terror Squad rapstress Remy Ma was found guilty of assault in the first degree, criminal possession of a weapon and attempted coercion this week. The charges stemmed from an incident where Remy shot and injured her friend, Makeda Barnes-Joseph, after the rapper discovered that $3,000 was missing from her purse, accusing Barnes-Joseph of stealing it. According to SOHH.com, Remy, her lawyer and supporters were shocked by the verdict, and as the rapper left the courtroom she began sobbing uncontrollably. Barnes-Joseph and her supporters, including her mother, cheered in celebration of the verdict. Remy Ma is facing ten to twenty-five years in prison and will be sentenced on April 23.

LA Times Diddy, Tupac Story a Fake

Last week the L.A. Times printed a story implicating Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ in the 1994 shooting of Tupac Shakur in New York. After the story was published, Diddy vehemently denied the allegations from Times reporter Chuck Phillips, saying that any documents pointing to his involvement were false. Apparently Diddy was right. Phillips and the L.A. Times publicly retracted the story and apologized for the false information reported.

"In relying on documents that I now believe were fake, I failed to do my job," Philips said in a statement Wednesday. "I'm sorry."

The documents in question were “FBI records” with testimony from a confidential informant. The documents were exposed by thesmokinggun.com, which claimed the docs were forged by James Sabatino, a promoter who said he participated in setting up Shakur. The story that was published could prompt a libel lawsuit from Combs.

New 50 Cent Video Game Announced

Even though 50’s first video game, Bulletproof, made you want to throw your controller at the television because of the poorly designed game play system, it still sold millions of copies thanks to G-Unit loyalists. That’s the reason why there’s a sequel titled Blood on the Sand dropping this fall for Xbox 360 and PS3. But this time, 50 says the game will be miles ahead of the last one with better a story and better game play. “We are taking this sequel to the next level with exciting combat and gunplay, new original music, great graphics and a new story,” 50 Cent said in a press release. “50 Cent: Blood on the Sand will have everything my fans are looking for in a 50 Cent game.”

NEW RELEASES

Guilty Simpson Ode to the Ghetto

Guilty has been putting in work on the Detroit hip-hop scene for a minute and eventually became one of producer J Dilla’s favorite MCs. On his debut album, he comes with the street wit he’s been known for in the underground circuit with production from Madlib, Mr. Porter, Black Milk, Babu and one of J Dilla’s last beats.

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EMC The Show

EMC is a super-group consisting of hip-hop legend Masta Ace and veteran emcees, Wordsworth, Punchline and Stricklin’. As with recent Masta Ace projects, The Show is also a concept album which follows the quartet on a tour stop as they arrive at the airport, get to the hotel and do the show, plus everything in between including the stress life on road causes family and artists. You already know their skills on the mic, but with production and appearances from Nicolay, Sean Price, Little Brother and Ladybug Mecca, this is a must have album from EMC.

Ghostface Killah Wallabee Champ

If you’re still fiendin' for some Ghostface music, there’s another album that hit stores this week. This one is a bit different as it features non-album, previously unreleased and rare tracks. The album includes appearances from Method Man, Lil Wayne, Jadakiss, Fat Joe, Prodigy, Raekwon and the rest of the Wu-Tang Clan.